NOVEL NEXT Chapter 209: Do You Bleed? Is Your Blood Red?
Reception room.
Smith Dole pushed open the door and stepped in, surprised to see S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Commander Hill. On the way over, he'd been wondering where Coulson had gone — after all, he was the one Smith always dealt with, and they'd never swapped him out for another agent before.
"Agent Hill, hello."
"Mr. Smith, hello," Hill replied immediately.
Smith settled into the sofa, leaning back, and looked at her. "So, what brings you here this time?"
Hill opened the folder she'd brought. "It's about what happened last night on Broadway."
Smith wasn't surprised — she couldn't possibly be here to talk about the Dragon Balls.
"The Broadway matter should be covered in the military's official report. You should be talking to General Ross for the details."
Hill pulled a photo from her folder — Smith firing heat vision from his eyes to slice apart a car.
Then she produced another — this time of Superman, Clark Kent, from a DC comic panel, using heat vision.
Smith's brow furrowed. "You think I'm Superman?"
Hill laid out several more photos, each paired with a comic comparison: flight, bulletproof body, super strength, blinding speed…
"Why don't you help me out here? Give me an ice breath pose so I can get a photo for the record."
Smith's expression darkened. "Are you suggesting I'm Kryptonian? Or are you seriously using a comic book character as evidence against me?"
"I'm just curious," Hill said evenly. "Don't you think you have a lot in common with him? Even the public is calling you a god among men."
Smith shrugged. "People can say whatever they want. You going to police their vocabulary?"
"America guarantees free speech," Hill replied. "But I am curious — do you bleed? Is your blood red?"
The moment the words left her mouth, she felt it — the crushing weight of a killing intent so strong it stole her breath.
"Are you trying to provoke me?" Smith's voice was low, dangerous.
Hill forced herself to speak under the pressure. "It's a line Batman once said to Clark Kent."
Smith's lips curled into a mocking smile. "What's this? You think S.H.I.E.L.D. is Bruce Wayne? You really believe I'm Kryptonian — or that I've got a Kryptonite-style weakness you just happen to know about?"
The pressure vanished. Hill smiled awkwardly. "Just quoting a comic scene. After all, you've got a social security record — you can't be an alien."
Of course — when the League of Assassins had arranged his identity, they'd set it up thoroughly, even adding pre–age-18 medical records. On paper, he'd grown up under the U.S. system despite being "adopted" by the League.
Hill knew his file inside and out before coming here, including his social security history — though his parents remained a mystery. Nineteen years on, S.H.I.E.L.D. still hadn't found them.
Smith let her change the subject without pushing further. "You didn't come here just to talk about Superman. Sure, our powers overlap a bit, but I can't just sunbathe my way to being stronger — now that's an enviable ability."
Truth was, Hill didn't believe he was an alien either. Krypton was fiction. And S.H.I.E.L.D. had records covering his entire life — not something you fabricate after the fact without leaving gaps. The only thing they couldn't explain was when, exactly, he'd become so far beyond human. The best guess was after he took over the League of Assassins.
Hill moved on. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is applying to the Security Council for land to build an Avengers base. You're on the candidate list. Do you have any suggestions for its formation or facilities?"
Smith's first thought: Fury's trying to embezzle. Everyone knew that in the films, the Avengers never got a base from S.H.I.E.L.D. — it came from Tony Stark's own pocket. Who knew if Fury had ever requested funding in the original timeline… and then pocketed it?
"You still haven't officially formed the team? When does my oversight authority kick in? Honestly, S.H.I.E.L.D. moves at a snail's pace — makes me wonder about corruption and negligence."
He leaned forward slightly. "When it's official, let me know. I'll bring auditors to give it a thorough check. As for the base — make it as big and well-equipped as possible. Satellites, warships, fighter jets — everything.
"Logistics, comms, medics — all in place before the first mission. And if necessary, equip the Avengers with ICBMs and nuclear strike capability. If we're facing possible alien threats, we should have Earth's best weapons on hand.
"As for team members — match mine and Tony's standard. Minimum entry requirement: blow the scouter readings off the scale."
(End of Chapter)
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